Prince George's county executive Angela Alsobrooks won Maryland's Senate Democratic primary on Tuesday, besting Rep. David Trone (D-Md.), AP projects.
Why it matters: Her victory comes in one of the only competitive Senate primaries this year and in the face of Trone spending more than $60 million of his own money on his bid.
- It's a reminder that money only goes so far in American politics.
- Alsobrooks will now face the popular former Republican Gov. Larry Hogan in the November general election.
- Hogan's entry has made the Senate race in the deep blue state surprisingly competitive — and in a year where Democrats are already forced to defend Senate seats in eight other states.
Zoom in: Allies have argued that Alsobrooks is the best candidate to beat Hogan because she can turn out voters in large urban areas like Baltimore City and Prince George's County.
- She defeated Trone handily in those areas in the primary contest.
- The race was called just before 10pm ET, much earlier than expected.
- Alsobrooks showed strength in the votes that were counted first — mail-in votes and early voting. It was believed that Trone would do better with those votes because older and more moderate voters tend to vote early.
Republicans hit Alsobrooks with their first line of attack right after the race was called.
- Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mon.), the chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, said in a statement that Alsobrooks "underfunded law enforcement while crime is skyrocketing in her county."
What to watch: Alsobrooks has garnered strong support from state leaders, but she will have to raise the funds needed to defend Democrats' seat where Trone was expected to largely self-fund.
- "I am confident that the Alsobrooks campaign will be able to raise the money necessary to beat Larry Hogan. She's the better candidate against Larry Hogan. She will have the resources to beat Larry Hogan," Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) told Axios.
Between the lines: The primary turned ugly in the final weeks, and Alsobrooks showed signs of momentum in the most recent polls despite Trone's spending spree.
- Trone was forced to apologize for using a racial slur, and his campaign scrubbed part of a campaign ad in which he said the Senate "is not a place for training wheels" after backlash from Black leaders.
- Maryland has one of the largest shares of Black voters in the country.
